To muzzle or not?? Advice please!!

Jess is the most loving dog! We rescued her nearly 2 years ago and she is a dream with people and in the house. The problem is she is not too good around other dogs. She either gets very excited and wants to play or she tries to attack. I walk her very early or very late when there are hardly any dogs around. Idiot owners in the park and fields by us have their HUGE dogs running off leads and this scares me as they come running over- jess just follows her natural instinct to attack. (She is never off the lead). To be honest I would attack too if someone charged at me in that manner!

The training classes I called will not take staffies.
I have worked incredibly hard with get the past two years and she is unrecognisable from the battered little thing I rescued from a skip!!

My dilemma is this - we have just bought a caravan on a site which will take dogs. Do you think it would be worth getting a muzzle? Any advice on how to get her used to wearing it? I don't want her to see it as a punishment. (She is a big baby and sulks!)
It angers me that I am considerate to other owners yet the kids have staffies and encourage them over to Jess.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

I take both my two to campsites and most have a rule that dogs are to be kept on leads

Skye is friendly buster is nervous aggressive with dogs I only muzzle buster when we are at the park where there are lots of off lead dogs

Never muzzle her if she doesn't need it . If you have her under control and other people cannot control their dogs then that is their problem not yours . The caravan site is a great opportunity for her to be social just controlled social if you muzzle her unneccesarily it will make her frustrated and add to your problems.

If you yearn for her to run free and with other dogs then yes the muzzle would be the best measure but how many owners do you think would be happy to let their dogs run around with her when she has the cage on her face , let alone because she is a staffy.

As staffy owners we have to be aware of the ignorance of others we know what our dogs are really capable of ( stealing the bed , giving you a head to toe tongue wash etc ) the rest of it is their perception not yours

Thanks for the advice. I may get one and try to get her used to it for certain situations. She has come such a long way and has grown to be a real darling. She is as soft as butter but I can't trust her around other dogs

Steph24680 wrote:

Thanks for the advice. I may get one and try to get her used to it for certain situations. She has come such a long way and has grown to be a real darling. She is as soft as butter but I can't trust her around other dogs

I can't trust my 2 ( especially the little fella ) around other dogs 100% but I will not muzzle

Gazagem wrote:I take both my two to campsites and most have a rule that dogs are to be kept on leads

Skye is friendly buster is nervous aggressive with dogs I only muzzle buster when we are at the park where there are lots of off lead dogs

I only do this when owners don't listen other than that I carry his muzzle and he does go off lead when no one around but has a brill recal

if she is not off lead why would you need to muzzle her? muzzling is stressful and potentially harmful. if someone else dog come up to her and she attacks its their fault not yours.

My dog is very similar Steph. Also a rescue dog, and brilliant with kids adults and in the house. Outside, if she sees another dog she either gets very excited and wants to play, or tries to attack them, especially smaller dogs. I keep her on the lead and only let her off when I can see there are no other dogs around, she is good at recall until she sees another dog. So I don't risk it. I'm also working with a trainer to socialise her properly.
I took her to a caravan a couple of months ago, it had an enclosed patio area so nice and safe, we could leave the caravan door open. She was kept on lead in the caravan park generally. One day, she was asleep in the caravan, door open, when she heard a noise outside, sounded like a dog fight. it was two small dogs from the caravan next door, both on lead. She shot out of the caravan, squeezed through the incredibly small gap in the fence, and started attacking one of the dogs! It was horrendous. The owner separated them, he was very upset and so was I, but we talked it over afterwards and he was OK about it.

i then considered a muzzle for certain circumstances. I have tried quite a few but they either don't fit her properly or she can easily get them off. So I don't think I can do that, I just need to continue with the training and be extra vigilant in those kind of circumstances.

You don't need to muzzle her it's unnecessary and will upset her and can make the situation worse lookout for the signs that she's not happy and act accordingly, darcy can on occasion be unpredictable but I won't muzzle her

Axl is a little unpredictable at times but I won't muzzle him. In my opinion I have him under control (on a lead) and I do not let him off around other dogs, I tend to take him to quieter places where he can run off lead without other dogs around but anyway more the point of this post, what worries me about muzzling apart from the obvious is if a dog attacks him whilst on the lead, he can't defend himself.

Roxie is DA and the vet suggested a muzzle after she got into a fight (this was a couple of years ago not long after we adopted her and we didn't really know her that well). I bought a muzzle but she absolutely hated it and when she and Maisey got let off between them they always got it off. I got rid of it and now just ensure that she is always under control. Lots of love and training and with use of the ball to keep her attention, she is a lot better but still will not tolerate another dog running at her. However, as long as she is 'under control', I don't feel I can be responsible for a dog that is allowed to run free and does not take the warning that she gives well before they get near her. We have been to numerous cavavan sites and they always stipulate 'keep dogs on a lead' which does help the situation.

My dog is just like yours too, i can not trust her, she may be ok with another dog, or she may not be. She is very rarely off lead unless i know there are no other dogs about, i use a 50ft long line so she gets a bit of freedom that way.
We go to a training class and they suggested we muzzle her, their thoughts are that if im stressed then the dog feels the stress also, so could make the situation worse than what i could have been, whereas if she was muzzled, i would have nothing to worry about, (her going for another dog), as i would be more relaxed knowing she cant do any harm.

But my issue is, if another dog came over to us and started attacking her, i wouldnt want her defenseless, plus she is on lead, she is under control, why should she be punished and restricted?

Thanks for sharing your experiences! It's so hard because we have worked really hard with her but when I walk her- always on the lead, I am constantly vigilant of other dogs coming towards her. She is perfect till she is approached by others. I have tried distraction techniques which work well ..... Until the walk!! I guess it's just persevering and staying out the way of other dogs which is a pity as I would love her to play with others xx

Perserverance is definitely the way forward, take baby steps and hopefully things will turn around keep us updated.

Irresponsible dog owners who let their dogs run up to others really gets me goat! It's bad doggy manners and not surprising your girl reacts as she does.
A friend of mine carries a small water spray so if a doggie charges up a little spray can do the trick. Although not always easy if your dog is getting agitated.

I know it's easier said then done, but bring some attention to how you are feeling when a dog is coming forward as your girl will be picking up on it. I start singing (got that tip from here) and it really helps to keep me a bit more relaxed.

I'll also calmly (usually) shout out to the owner to call their dog. The other day Betsy was on the training as she had the squits so I didn't want her running around. A female staff came running over and the owner was say 50 yards away just watching. Now Betsy can be dominant and we have had some growls and dominant behaviour which can spiral with other female staffs. I didn't know this dog and wasn't taking any chances with him so far away. I shouted for him to call his dog and fortunately he did.

Do you know any calm males that you could introduce her to?
How frustrating re the classes not taking staffs!!! You are a responsible owner trying to socialise your dog and they say no. I went to a training class when I first got Betsy and was told to muzzle her! We promptly left there as in my view the trainer should have been muzzled as now I've learnt more, a lot of what happened could have easily been avoided.

Good luck and your girl is lucky to have you. Speak out to these irresponsible owners and personally I wouldn't muzzle her as she is in your control. I have muzzle trained Betsy in case we are ever advised by the vet i.e. on strict diet etc.

Thank you everyone for your reassuring words! She is such a good girl on both her short and long lead, I am always vigilant but as you said it's the other dog walkers who let their dogs off the lead!! I took her out yesterday and she was great till this young collie came running over. I shouted to the man asking him to call back the dog and put him on the lead as jess was not good with other dogs. He just said no my dog is running around. I told him again and he said 'oh she will be alright' I made jess sit down and 'wait' which bless her she did. The dog them bounded towards jess needless to said started growling and snarling, the man then DARED to tell me she was a devil dog and had a face of evil!!!! What a b"@@@@d!! My baby is gorgeous.
People like this really annoy me.
I secretly wanted her to nip his flat cap off!! She calmed down eventually and we enjoyed the rest of our walk in peace. I wish other owners would be aware that like humans we are not all sociable!

I think it's advisable to get a muzzle & get her used to wearing one, just in case it's needed. But not for every day use.

For example, if you need to walk through an area that has a lot of dogs you may want to pop her muzzle on just to give you peace of mind, which in turn will help her to relax a little.

The easiest way to get them used to a muzzle is to smear some peanut butter (or honey) over the inside of the muzzle (a cage type - like the Baskerville, as this still lets your dog pant & drink, and you can even give them treats through them) and just put it on the floor. Let your dog lick it & even throw it around a bit.

Keep doing that for a few days & then do the same thing, but hold the muzzle in your hand while she licks it. Once she's happy with that, just ease it over her nose & hold it there for a second or two. Eventually you should be able to clip the muzzle in place - but again, only for a second or two, and give loads of praise. Then just gradually build up the time it's clipped.